So you’ve decided to quit cigarettes. Well, congratulations! You have actually taken the first step already. Many smokers today understand that smoking is harmful to their health and the people around them. They know that they should quit smoking; however, it is not so easy. Your first days without enough nicotine into your body can be really difficult.
If you are tired of your smoking habits, then here are three effective ways from the experts at quitstopnow.com you can use to stop smoking for good:
Delay
The urge to smoke is usually very strong and will last just a few minutes. These few minutes, however, may seem like an eternity for an addict who is trying to quit. Delaying your cravings for tobacco can come a long way in helping you quit.
Every time you get this craving, you can find something else to keep your mind off that urge- preferably something you enjoy doing, like your hobby. This will help you deprogram yourself and the urges will be less frequent.
Avoid
The idea here is to change how you think and what you do. You will have to eliminate or reduce your exposure to situations, people, and things that make you want to smoke again.
Some of the things you can do to avoid your exposure to smoking cigarettes include eliminating the smell of tobacco from your home and clothes and keep things like matches, ashtrays, and lighters out of reach. More importantly, you should try to spend more time with non-smokers. All these actions will help you avoid temptations, and you will concentrate better on your goals and objectives.
Replace
You can replace your smoking time with some social or physical activities that you may enjoy doing; be it swimming, fitness training, hockey, or just talking to other people. If you are not an outdoor person, you should try and keep your hands busy always. For instance, play with an elastic band, an anti-stress ball, draw something, play an instrument, do something on your computer; basically, anything that will keep you busy.
These activities will take up the time that you usually spend on smoking and will gradually help you overcome your habitual cigarette smoking.
Lastly, it is important to note that it is very difficult to quit smoking. Therefore, make sure that you have a person or people to support and talk to through this endeavor.